Jute Cafe & Bar at DCA

Jute Cafe & Bar at DCA

Friday, 26 January 2024

Dundee Contemporary Arts is the place to go for contemporary art exhibitions, cinema screenings (especially indie films), and creative events. At the heart of the venue is Jute - a relaxed cafe and bar offering a range of food, drinks, coffee, and cake. It’s a great spot for a quiet coffee during the day but really comes to life at night.

It’s actually somewhere we regularly go for drinks, sometimes with a cinema visit, as part of Creative Dundee meets and book club, or for the beer garden in summer. It’s always got a great atmosphere so I’m really not sure why it took us so long to go for a meal! Nonetheless, we booked a table at the end of the Christmas holidays and treated ourselves to lunch.

We started with a couple of mocktails. I had the strawberry and apple crush, and David went for the raspberry spritz. These were both lovely, I’ve had the strawberry one a few times when we’ve been to the cinema and it’s always so refreshing and nicely sweet. We double-checked the vegan options on the lunch menu as it turned out there was a typo on the fries (marked vegetarian only but they were vegan too).

I went for the plant-based burger which came with kimchi slaw, crispy kale and gochujang mayonnaise on brioche. This was delicious, I especially liked the crispy kale and would have loved a wee bit more of it. David had the curried coronation chickpea flatbread with crispy shallots, and fennel and apple slaw. It was more of a chickpea curry-type sausage, but the spices were satisfyingly warming and fruity. These dishes both came with rustic fries but we upgraded one to piri piri fries - the piri piri seasoning was tasty but it was only a tiny sprinkle on top rather than tossed through.

The portions were pretty generous, especially for lunch, but I was determined we were going to share a dessert as I’d spotted something exciting - vegan pavlova! This is something I’d made a few times as it’s a favourite in our house, so we were looking forward to trying it. Luckily it lived up to my expectations! Presentation wise, it’s a bit blob-like but it tasted incredible. It was topped with whipped cream rippled with raspberry coulis, and a sprinkling of passion fruit. There was a slice of pineapple between the meringue and the cream which I wasn’t totally keen on, because of the texture, but we still enjoyed it a lot.

David had an oat latte to finish. We noticed a vegan chocolate cake on the sweet counter on our way out so will definitely be adding Jute to our coffee date list for the future.

Find Jute Cafe & Bar at 152 Nethergate, DD1 4DY
https://www.jutecafebar.co.uk/

Black Mamba Tapas & Cocktail Bar

Black Mamba Tapas & Cocktail Bar

Saturday, 20 January 2024

Black Mamba opened at the end of last year - a tapas and cocktail bar, serving “tapas without boundaries” from the people behind Giddy Goose. I saw some vegan options on the menu so we went to try it out.

First impressions, the interior is gorgeous; contemporary luxe vibes and I love the attention to detail with the little lamps on the tables. There’s a long marble bench in the centre which would suit communal dining and drinks, or could be fun to book for a special event. The bathrooms are beautiful too, with gold accents and emerald tiles. I’m sure that’s enough about interiors (though it’s very much a topic on my mind as we’re mid bathroom renovation), time to talk food.

I had a tangerine & cinnamon mojit-no to drink which was lovely and refreshing but with delightful warming spice flavours. I love to see a more unique mocktail and there were plenty of interesting alcoholic ones too. We ordered our food and were recommended 2-3 dishes per person and told that they would come out as they were ready.

We basically went for all of the vegan dishes to share; patatas barbacoa (crispy potatoes, Korean with BBQ sauce), padron pepper poppers (tempura, onion ash), Korean fried oyster mushrooms with sticky Gochujang sauce, roasted butternut squash (adapted to be vegan, with whipped tofu), and stir-fried greens (long stem broccoli, bean sprout, spring cabbage and chilli crisp). The food was beautifully presented and the dishes all complemented each other deliciously. I think the stir-fried greens were actually my favourite, but David loved the mushrooms and BBQ potatoes.

The menu has clear labelling for vegan options, though we were dining with non-vegan friends and found that our waiter seemed a bit confused about which dishes were vegan when they were brought out which gave me a wee bit of food anxiety. We were also a bit disappointed that there were no vegan desserts on offer - especially as some of the brunch options include desserty sounding vegan French toast which sounds amazing.

Black Mamba have a selection of offers for weekdays, such as 2 tapas for £9.99 (Mon-Fri, 12-4pm) and Mambacita Club on Fridays (3 cocktails & 2 tapas for £27.99). They also have a wee kids’ menu and high chairs are available. You can even bring your furry friends as Black Mamba is dog-friendly! It’s so great to have new places like this open up, we’ll definitely be back in to try brunch soon.

Follow @blackmambadundee for updates and let us know if you go!

Find Black Mamba at 141 Nethergate, DD1 4DP
https://www.blackmambadundee.co.uk/

Lunch at The Little Green Larder

Lunch at The Little Green Larder

Wednesday, 8 November 2023

The Little Green Larder has been a favourite of ours for years, we originally featured it in early 2020, back when this blog was Vegan Dundee. Since then, this eco-friendly shop has evolved (with the help of a Crowdfunder earlier this year) into a great spot for a TASTY AF takeaway lunch - as the new mural says!

They still stock a fab selection of refill products, such as grains, pulses, nuts, dried fruit and other pantry essentials, alongside plastic-free household accessories and, of course, vegan pick and mix. But now, on arrival, there’s a deli counter stocked with fresh salads and daily vegan specials which aren’t to be missed.

We’ve been popping in regularly for lunch treats - the haggis nachos and breakfast burrito with homemade hash browns get a special mention, but I do love a wee salad box too. On this visit, Jillian invited* us to try a range of the specials while I took some photos of the upgraded space.

We were truly spoilt with this feast - we had a coronation haggis toastie with coronation chickpea side salad (David’s choice - he loves coronation so doubled up!), Mediterranean veg hummus focaccia roll with potato salad, a mezze box, and Thai green curry soup with fresh crusty bread (my favourite, love a warming comfort soup). Jillian also made us an incredible Oreo milkshake complete with vegan whipped cream - it was so good!

Lunch options are from around £2.95 (soup or a mini salad box) to £6.50 (sandwich with soup). You can add a tea or filter coffee for £2. The teas are lovely loose-leaf ones which you can also purchase in the shop by weight, I chose the apple dream one for its cosy seasonal vibes.

We also had a box of vegan sweet treats which were part of the Crowdfunder reward that I forgot to pick up. Inside was a banana chocolate cupcake, Oreo brownie, empire biscuit, and (an amazing) chocolate cookie sandwich. It's so great having a vegan-friendly lunch place at this end of the Perth Road - perfect for grabbing food to eat down at Magdalen Green in the warmer months.

Little Green Larder also has a fantastic pay-it-forward scheme where you can donate your loose change in store, online, or buy a lunch or hot drink voucher so someone in the community can redeem it when they're in need. They’ll also be taking part in the West End Christmas Fortnight and have monthly community soup kitchens. Follow The Little Green Larder on Instagram or Facebook to see daily specials and upcoming events. 

Find the Little Green Larder at 272 Perth Road, DD2 1AE

https://thelittlegreenlarder.com/

*The Little Green Larder gifted us our lunch, all opinions are my own.

The Nourish Takeout Co. Fitness Food

The Nourish Takeout Co. Fitness Food

Tuesday, 5 September 2023

The Nourish Takeout Co. offers guilt-free, calorie counted fitness food. I’m 100% not the target market for this as I don’t think that guilt or calorie counting are helpful when it comes to eating, but I understand that those can be a necessary part of a fitness lifestyle. Nonetheless, they offer vegan options so we went to try them out.

The interior is a colourful industrial vibe with exposed white brickwork, metro tiles, greenery and neon lights. It was quite quiet when we visited so we could have grabbed a window seat for a spot of people watching but it was such a lovely day that we took our food to go and are outside The Steeple.

There are a couple of menus on the screens above the counter but you can order on the tablet nearer the door. It’s nice to be able to browse the vegan options on there, and there was quite a few. I went for the cookies and cream smoothie and a nourish box. You can pick your own protein, seasoning, sides and sauce, or there’s a list of Nourish box favourites to choose from.

I had the Vegan Spice box which was vegan piri chicken, spiced couscous, roasted veg and vegan garlic aioli. This was super tasty, the ‘chicken’ was vegan Quorn pieces which I hadn’t had in ages but they were nicely seasoned and went well with the garlic aioli. The smoothie was quite rich, made with a protein powder which wasn’t too obvious but it did taste kind of banana-y. I think I’d try the summer berry one next time.

Since our visit I noticed that they added vegan protein pancakes with toppings such as cinnamon and apple crumble or banoffee which both sound delicious. It’s great to have a healthy spot in the centre of town, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy it even if you’re not into ‘fitness’ food.

Find The Nourish Takeout Co at 91 Nethergate, DD1 4DH
nourishtakeout.co.uk

Afternoon Tea at Post House Coffee Co.

Afternoon Tea at Post House Coffee Co.

Tuesday, 15 August 2023

Post House Coffee Co is just outside of Dundee, in the wee village of Invergowrie. They offer breakfast, brunches, lunch and afternoon tea with separate vegan menus making it easy to choose something delicious to eat. They’re licensed too if you fancy some fizz with your afternoon tea.

I booked our afternoon tea as a sort-of baby shower for my friend Lyndsey, I told them we were vegan in advance and paid a deposit. We were shown to a table inside but it was such a beautiful day we asked to sit outside. I chose a pot of earl grey tea and Lyndsey went for regular breakfast tea. Not long after the tea arrived, a huge stand of treats appeared - decorated with fresh strawberries and all looking very tempting.

From the bottom, we had sandwiches that were cut into triangles filled with falafel and hummus, and coronation chickpea (to replace mature ‘cheddar’ & tomato chilli jam which wasn’t available that day). There was a couple of tasty little sausage rolls too. We realised we were missing the mango and coriander falafel skewers but not until later on and didn’t want to ask at that point. There was plenty to eat and we almost didn’t manage it all anyway.

Onto the cakes; there was lemon and blueberry cupcake, Persian style flapjack, dark chocolate fudge brownie, pistachio and carrot cake, and a salted caramel cheesecake bite. We both liked the lemon and blueberry cupcake best, it was zingy and moist (I think it was a sub for the lemon, raspberry and rose drizzle that was on the menu which sounds lovely too). All of the sweets were delicious, although we did find the cheesecake a bit too sweet.

I would absolutely love to see an afternoon tea with a proper scone, jam, and cream alternative. I used to work in a tearoom in fife with award winning scones before I was vegan and it just doesn’t quite feel like a proper afternoon tea without. If you know of anywhere serving this please do let me know! The vegan afternoon tea at Post House is still a treat and one to add to your list.

Find Post House Coffee Co. at 104 Main Street, Invergowrie, DD2 5BE
www.posthouseinvergowrie.co.uk/

A Vegan's Guide to Dundee Restaurant Week

A Vegan's Guide to Dundee Restaurant Week

Monday, 26 June 2023

Dundee Restaurant Week is nearly here! For 11 days from the 29th June - 9th July, there’s a whole host of venues to visit and enjoy dining discounts at. Simply sign up and get your free digital pass here, have a wee browse of the participating restaurants and get planning.

Dundee Restaurant Week sent us to Mexican Grill* to see what they had on offer. Their Restaurant Week deal is 2x courses for £17.95 or 3 x courses for £20.95. We opted for a pineapple mocktail and a deliciously refreshing virgin mojito. Sadly there weren’t any vegan starters for us to try, but we thoroughly enjoyed our main courses. The staff were clued up on what could be made plant-based and told us they could make their burrito and fajitas vegan (without cheese). These were both so flavoursome and I loved the dramatic sizzling plate of veggies for the fajitas. The portions were very generous, so we shared a lovely orange sorbet for dessert.

Mexican Grill is taking part in Dundee Restaurant Week

Mexican Grill might not be the most obvious vegan-friendly dining choice, but it just shows how many plant-based options you can find these days. The good news is, I’ve done the research for you to create an A-Z of the vegan-friendly Dundee Restaurant Week venues. There may well be more, but these are either eateries we’ve previously visited, or have clearly marked vegan options on their online menus.

Andreous

(20% off)
Andreou’s have lots of vegan options including roast veg gyros, and hot and cold meze such as vegan halloumi fries, patatas bravas, chickpea stew, falafel and grilled veg skewers.
118 Nethergate / @andreousdundee

The Barrelman

(brunch and mimosa for £13)
There’s one delicious sounding option on their brunch menu - black bean chilli tacos with bean chilli, sweet potato, chipotle mayo, pico de gallo, avocado & pickled slaw. Yum!
100-108 Commercial Street / @thebarrelmanbar

Brewdog

(pizza and a pint of beer or any medium glass of wine for £14.50)
Their pizza options include vegan spicy meaty (Temple of Seitan strips, wild mushrooms, chilli fl akes, fresh red chilli, smashed Napoli tomatoes & vegan mozzarella) or the hero (Wild mushrooms, courgette ribbons, pine nuts, smashed Napoli tomatoes, rosemary).
Chamber Building, Panmure Street / @brewdogdundee

The Cannon

(any sandwich/wrap/toastie and soup for £7)
There’s an old school vegan option on their menu - avocado, red pepper hummus, tomato and rocket sandwich or wrap.
11 Union Street / @thecannondundee

EH9 Espresso

(bagel and coffee for £6)
They have a lovely vegan bagel named “The Betsy”; hummus, sun-dried tomatoes, carrot ribbons and rocket. If you’re in making the most of this offer look out for the cinnamon scrolls too.
248 Perth Road / @eh9.espresso

FIKA

(Large hot drink & cake for £6)
Vegan cake is usually available along with plant milk.
75 Perth Road / @fikadundee

Frankie & Benny’s

(family meal deal for 4: £35.99, or pasta meal deal for 2: £21.99)
They offer plant based pasta, pizza, salad, burger, hot dog and sides.
Overgate Centre / @frankienbennys

Gallery 48

(£18 for 3 x tapas of choice or £25 for 3 x Tapas & Glass of Sangria - Saturdays until 6PM)
Vegan tapas options include chickpea stew, tenderstem broccoli and chargrilled vegetables - though these are actually less than £18 for three anyway.
48 West Port / @gallery_48

Giddy Goose

(any pizza or pasta for £9)
Choose from two vegan pizzas: Margherita or Garden Heat (peppers, shallots, jalapeños & sweetcorn)
2 Perth Road / @thegiddygoosedundee

Innis & Gunn

(£35 for 2 - 2 starters, 2 mains and a drink each)
Starters are KFC cauliflower or butternut squash hummus, and choose from moving mountains burger or vegan shepherd pie for your main.
10 South Tay Street / @innisandgunndundee

Little Things Cafe

(Hand-crafted drinks and a cake for £5)
You’ll usually find vegan cupcake options, and a vegan and gluten free salted caramel brownie to go with your hot drink.
35 Reform Street / @littlethingscafe

Loco Ritas

(Any 3 dishes for £15)
Fully vegan Mexican Cantina! You can read our previous blog post here. Shout out to the cheeseburger loaded fries.
Old Hawkhill / @loco_ritas_dundee

Malmaison

(2 x courses for £22 or 3 x courses for £27)
Starters are cauliflower & coconut soup and Cobb salad, or Cobb salad can be had as a main. There’s also a black bean burger.
44 Whitehall Crescent / @malmaisonhotels

Mas Mexicana

(4 dishes for £16 - usually £26)
Choose from vegan quesadillas, tostada and tacos. They also have apple pie tacos with vanilla ice cream for dessert!
304 Perth Road / @mas_mexicana

Mexican Grill

(2x courses for £17.95 or 3 x courses for £20.95)
See above, items can be made vegan.
24 Castle Street / @mexicangrilldundee

Parlour Cafe

(10% off)
Soups, salads, sandwiches, mezze - lots of seasonal produce means the menu changes but there’s always vegan options.
58 West Port / @parlourpeople

Reboutique 

(Cup of Tea & Cake £4)
Cakes are all vegan! Usually lots of choice too.
Reboutique: 33 Castle Street / @reboutique_dundee

Serendipities

(Cup of tea & cake £4, iced tea or spritzer £2, homemade pie, wedges & house salad £5.50, quesadilla, homemade cake & any drink £11)
Fully vegan!
Serendipities: 12 Union Street / @serendipities_dundee

Tahini

(15% off before)
Lebanese small plates set menu, tell them you’re vegan when you book and you’ll be in for a treat!
11 Bank Street / @tahinidundee

Taza

(15% off, excluding drinks)
Lots of vegan options including traditional curries, and even naan breads.
City Quay / @tazadundee

The Flame Tree Cafe

(Rainbow bagel BLT and coffee for £7)
Bagel can be made with vegan Sgaia rashers for £1.50 extra. Alternative milks available for coffee.
20 Exchange Street / @theflametreecafe

The Selkie

(3 tapas for £10)
Lots of clearly labeled vegan tapas options including vegan meatballs, seared sweet chilli tofu and homemade veg chorizo in red wine.
27 Exchange Street / @theselkiedundee

The West House

(2 main meals for £17.50)
They have a couple of vegan pizzas including a Margherita and Verdura (tomato, not-zarella, spinach, onions, peppers, chillies and mushrooms), as well as an arrabbiata pasta.
2 West Port / @thewesthouse

Lots to choose from! If you’re feeling inspired to visit some local restaurants make sure you sign up for your free pass today. You can also make a donation to pay it forward to one of Dundee’’s community cafes.

Remember to mention restaurant week when booking and tag @dundeerestaurantweek to share your favourite foodie finds.

https://www.dundeerestaurantweek.co.uk/

*This post is in partnership with Dundee Restaurant Week. All opinions are my own.

Angus Grill & Larder

Angus Grill & Larder

Tuesday, 20 June 2023

Angus Grill & Larder recently launched their new summer menu and kindly invited* us along to see what vegan treats were on offer for lunch. Just off the A90 before Brechin, Angus Grill & Larder serves fresh food with an emphasis on locally sourced produce. With plenty of seating (indoor and out), a wee doggy park, and to-go service, it’s a handy stopping point - but worth making the trip just for a visit too.

We’d actually been here before when we got a flat tyre on our drive back from the Blue Door Walk in Edzell. Luckily for us, we were able to wait for the recovery vehicle from the comfort of the outdoor area with a coffee by the fire pit that day. It was great to come back under nicer circumstances and actually enjoy a meal this time.

After being shown to our table by the friendly front-of-house team, we found there were lots of Scottish brands on the drinks menu, like Bon Accord and Nuisance. I chose a refreshing Summer House raspberry lemonade which was perfect for a hot day. We were very excited to see that they offered a vegan milkshake; made with vanilla ice cream, oat milk and Oreos. It was served in a traditional steel malt cup and was deliciously thick.

To eat, we decided on the vegan dog and club sandwich. There were also vegan wings and a falafel burger which could be made vegan on the menu. The food was quick to arrive and the portions were very generous.

The herby vegan dog came grilled, in a pretzel bun with freshly fried onions and fries. David really enjoyed this, though it was missing the mustard which would have made it even better. We both agreed that the club sandwich was our favourite. Toasted ciabatta, stuffed with vegan bacon and chicken, plant-based cheese, avocado, lettuce, tomato and vegan mayo. It was such a tasty combo and great to see something a bit different. I opted for fries but you could have this with the house salad instead, which might have been a better idea as we were both so full.

Angus Grill & Larder has quite a minimal but modern interior vibe, so it’s a fun surprise to find the colourful art gallery toilets (“lavatoriums”). There are three, each painted by a different local artist, and finished with eco-friendly products. Pictured here is Arbroath Adventures by Laura Darling, the other two are Fields of Forfar by Louise Kirby and Pamela Scott’s Bonny Brechin.

As well as using local suppliers in their kitchen, you’ll find some fab products in their larder area. These shelves are filled with goodies such as drinks (I spied Angus Alchemy!), jams, candles, coffee and soap. We picked up a jar of Dip Club Rasp-beret Chipotle salsa which I’m very much looking forward to opening soon.

One thing worth noting is that although Angus Grill & Larder is dog-friendly, dogs aren’t allowed inside the restaurant. There’s Hallie and Maple’s doggy play park which is a secure area for letting them off the lead, and you can have them in the outside seating area too.

You can find Angus Grill & Larder at Balnabriech, Brechin, DD9 6RN
https://angusgrillandlarder.co.uk/
@angusgrilluk

*Angus Grill & Larder gifted us our lunch, all opinions are my own.